Mailing is a strategy used by companies and professionals all over the world who run their own businesses. And, not surprisingly, it brings excellent results, regardless of the sector in which it is implemented.
That’s because an email marketing service is a direct channel for communication and information that strengthens brand image, promotes customer loyalty, contributes to sales and lets us make a positive impact on the business, saving time and money.
Aside from all its advantages, one of the aspects that raises the most doubts when implementing a strategy of this type is precisely the right sending frequency.
We can find very different (and even contradictory) statements on this aspect, as it all depends on the perspective of the business in question. So, in this article, we’ll talk about what is the ideal frequency for sending mass mailing campaigns, or rather, what is the best, depending on the type of business.
To find out the best frequency for sending mass mailing campaigns, you should analyze different criteria of your business, as it can vary depending on its nature.
Stay here at Mailrelay and we’ll tell you all about it!
Criteria for determining the sending frequency
The first thing you should understand is that there is no universal frequency for sending campaigns or, in other words, one that is equally effective for all businesses or companies.
That said, I invite you to take note of some of the criteria that can most influence the frequency of your mailings.
In this sense, you should analyze each of these criteria to adapt them to your particular circumstances, in order to make the right decision and thus work later on possible optimization and improvement of results.
It’s important to emphasize that sending mass mailing campaigns is not the same as sending newsletters. These formats have different objectives and therefore their sending frequencies should also be different.
The purpose of sending a mass mailing campaign
First of all, the sending frequency is determined by the purpose of the mailing. Among these, we can distinguish objectives such as the following ones:
- Launching a new product or service.
- Discounts or promotions for a limited time.
- Loyalty offers.
- High-ticket or low-ticket sales.
In the case of promotions, the sending frequency will depend on their duration. For example, a Christmas promotion (which can last 3 weeks or even a month) is not the same as a Book Day promotion:
● Sending frequency of a mailing for a Christmas promotion. In this case, the frequency would be lower and spread out over time (for example, a couple of emails a week at most).
● Sending frequency of a mailing for a Book Day promotion. Since the promotion is shorter, the frequency can increase (for example, one email a day for a week).
It should also be noted that in the case of newsletters, whose purpose is not purely promotional, it is possible (and even advisable) to increase the sending frequency. After all, we’re talking about newsletters that are of greater interest to their recipients.
The profile of the subscriber database
Another element that can influence the frequency with which campaigns are sent is the average profile of the subscribers in the database. In this respect, it’s important to differentiate between professional and personal profiles. By this I mean two aspects:
- Firstly, it is essential to distinguish between B2B and B2C businesses. The former are aimed at companies and the latter at end consumers.
- In addition, you should check your database to detect whether emails are from corporate or personal accounts (e.g. gmail).
This can provide you with important information about the sending frequency. For example, if they are mainly corporate emails, the frequency should be adapted to business hours. But if they are personal, they could be sent during leisure time.
In addition to all this, you should analyze the metrics of previous mailings to draw up a more precise user profile. You’ll probably find patterns that can help you determine a sending frequency that leads to success.
The tool for sending mass mailing campaigns
If we look at the issue from a technological point of view, we must mention the different tools on the market for sending mass mailing campaigns. The nature of these tools will also influence the sending frequency.
Ideally, you should use one that allows a high sending volume and lets you schedule emails so that they are sent on the expected day and time.
In this respect, Mailrelay meets both of these conditions. On the one hand, the free account allows you to send up to 80,000 emails a month. On the other hand, it includes an option to schedule mailings (even for the free plan).
In addition, without leaving the free email marketing account, you can enjoy advantages such as:
- It includes an easy-to-use visual editor for creating professional emails without technical knowledge.
- It allows you to work with a database of up to 20,000 contacts.
- There are no daily sending limitations, so it won’t affect your frequency.
- It offers support to answer your questions.
You can sign up for Mailrelay at this link.
All of this is extremely important, as not all tools on the market offer this flexibility on free accounts. So check the features and packages offered by all of them before choosing one.
Mailrelay is the only tool on the market that offers 80,000 emails per month in its free account. It also includes premium features without the need to enter bank details.
Sending statistics
Your sending statistics will tell you how your users behave with the emails you send. In other words, you can analyze what the ideal sending frequency is, for example, according to open rates.
If you discover that they are a loyal audience and open every email you send, regardless of the quantity, you may be able to increase the frequency.
If, on the other hand, you notice that a high sending volume makes them stop reading your emails, and even increases the number of unsubscribes from your database, it would be best to reduce the frequency.
Seasonality of the business
Another aspect to consider is the seasonality of your product or service. In other words, do you offer a product or service that can be consumed all year round? Or, on the contrary, is it something offered only during certain months?
An example of this could be swimwear. This type of product is usually bought more during the summer. Therefore, the sending frequency should be low during the rest of the year, while it should increase from June to August.
In short, it’s better to invest time and effort when the customer is really willing to buy.
If you send the same type of campaigns every year, I recommend that you review previous metrics to set a sending frequency adjusted to your audience’s needs.
Available resources
Finally, the sending frequency will also be conditioned by the resources you have available. In other words, whether you have the financial and human resources to devote to this task. It is understood that with more resources, you are more likely to be able to create professional, conversion-optimized emails.
On the other hand, if your resources are limited, it is preferable to send emails less frequently, but make sure the ones you send meet the above conditions. Otherwise, your audience will end up unsubscribing from your list.
Unlike mass emails or mailings, newsletters have a less commercial and more informative purpose. This means that it can be sent more frequently.
A newsletter is a very powerful indirect sales tool. Although it is not its main objective, its content helps enormously to win customers through user loyalty.
In this sense, some people prefer to send a single weekly newsletter, while others choose to send a daily one. Some of the considerations you should take into account before defining the frequency of your newsletters are:
- Strategy. Do you have one? Any step you take in the marketing world must be backed up by a coherent strategy. If it suggests a high frequency rate, you should go for it (and vice versa).
- Email creation capacity. Sending a mass email every day and having your audience welcome it is quite unlikely. So, if you think you don’t have the capacity to create a message that is attractive enough for your recipients, it’s best to reduce the frequency. We have a responsibility to make sure users don’t become disillusioned with email marketing.
- Audience acceptance. This point is linked to the previous one. If your newsletters are successful with users, go ahead and increase the frequency. But if acceptance drops the more you send, put on the brakes!
Any action you take when sending emails, especially mass emails, must be well thought out and backed by a strategy. It’s best not to improvise, as the results could be compromised.
As for the question of when is the best time to send a newsletter, I’ll tell you that opinions in the sector vary widely…
- The most widespread opinion is that the ideal time is Tuesday to Thursday, first thing in the morning or late in the afternoon.
- According to some sources, on Mondays we don’t pay much attention to emails that aren’t urgent. In other words, we concentrate on those messages that were left over from Friday or those we received over the weekend asking for something important.
- On Fridays, we can’t wait to turn off the computer, as we just want to disconnect and rest. And this indicates that it’s not a good day to send newsletters either.
- As for weekends, we seem to be less inclined to read emails. So it’s best not to send a newsletter on these dates.
But… is all this true? In my opinion, before taking any statement for granted, the ideal thing is to check what your audience’s preferred time of day is.
To do this, you should test your database. You might be surprised! The time of day can vary according to the users you target, the type of newsletter you send, the countries you work with, your sector…
With regard to the latter, imagine that you organize family events in the countryside. Don’t you think it would be better to send your newsletters on weekends? With Mailrelay you can easily run this kind of test and measure the results. This data is what will really tell you the best time to send a newsletter.
So… is there an ideal sending frequency?
As you may have deduced, there is no standard frequency for all companies or projects. It is therefore advisable for everyone to establish their own, based on criteria such as those described in this article.
If it’s the first time you’re tackling this kind of task, as I said about the newsletter schedule, the best thing to do is run tests to check your audience’s reaction.
Remember that not everyone reacts the same way to a mass email campaign. Some people don’t mind receiving emails with high frequency, but others may find it annoying.
In addition, you should analyze how to get better metrics from your emails. In other words, what kind of frequency helps you get the best results. This may be the most relevant factor of all 😉
Either way, I encourage you to test your sending frequency with your own database. Email is undoubtedly still one of the best digital channels for communicating with your subscribers and, why not, with potential customers!
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